There are countless ways of growing a brand. Many practitioners wonder whether a Facebook page for their practice is worth the hassle. Facebook is easier than you think. It is also the most cost-effective marketing solution for reaching your target audience. If you aren't sure how to get started or still need a little convincing, consider the following:
Why Facebook?
Facebook facilitates communication with your target audience. It puts a human face on your practice. It introduces you and your professional mission to the world, all while driving traffic to your website and keeping prospects and patients informed on your offerings – 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
Here's the best part of establishing a Facebook page for your business — it's free! It won't cost you a dime to set up a page. You can always choose to spend money on additional paid advertising, but establishing a professional page will only cost you a few minutes of your time.
Setting Up a Business Page
Facebook does a great job of giving you step-by-step instructions to start a brand-new business page or convert an existing personal profile into a business page. Before you start, there are a few pieces of information you should have on hand.
First, create a brief description of your practice for the "About Us" section. Share a bit about your education, what inspired your passion for acupuncture, and even a bit about your family or personal hobbies. Let people get a glimpse of who you are, both inside and outside the office.
You'll also need to decide on a profile and cover photo. Keep it professional. This reflects your business and establishes a client's first impression. Your headshot, the outside of your building, waiting rooms, and/or pictures of treatment rooms are all excellent options. Facebook provides recommended image dimensions and file types here.
Next, think about a call to action. Facebook allows a call-to-action button at the top of your page. Be mindful of what behavior you want to drive when someone visits your page. It could be as general as "learn more" about your practice; or as specific as "make an appointment" or "call now." Don't be afraid to take a peek at other professional pages to get an idea of what makes sense for your page.
Promoting Your Page
Once you've established a Facebook business page, it's time to promote. If you have a practice website, make sure to link it to Facebook. Add a link to all of your outgoing emails. Invite your patients to follow your page. Then, consider allocating a budget for Facebook advertising. The minimum you can spend is $1 per day or $30 per month. Facebook provides filtering options to target your ads on an individual's interests and location. Facebook offers answers to frequently asked questions about ads and pricing at the Facebook Business Solutions page here.
Practice Takeaway
Marketing initiatives take time and require commitment. Facebook is just one of a series of tools to boost your brand and name recognition. However, for most practitioners, it is the easiest and most cost-effective way to start growing your practice.
Structured water (H3O2) can be considered a fourth state of water between liquid and solid. It has the hexagonal structure of ice; however, missing a critical bond, it behaves more like a gel than a solid, but retains some of its crystalline structure.
In the past five years of my clinical practice, I have seen an astonishing upsurge in the chronic use of proton-pump inhibitor (PPI) medications for the gastrointestinal issue diagnosed by allopathic medicine as GERD. It is not uncommon to encounter patients taking these prescriptions for five-plus years.
Working with chronically ill patients entails acknowledging the reality that not all patients will survive their diagnosis. Chinese medicine and acupuncture play a crucial role in palliative and end-of-life care, addressing medication and disease side effects, alleviating pain associated with death, reducing anxiety and stress, and helping patients find peace during the dying process.
